Chapter 1 — The Prophet Awakens: Shedding the Worthless Shell

The December wind blew through Nguyệt Trạch Hall, carrying the cold air of the borderlands. Xa Tuyết Doanh still sat upright as if ice, not blood, ran through her veins. Twelve patriarchs sat on either side with their eyes lowered; none dared look directly at the cold face of the woman who ruled the vast land of Bắc Nguyên.

"This winter's grain stores are down by a third compared with last year." Her voice was flat, without emotion, as if she were reading an inanimate number. "Chief of the Thanh Lang Tribe, you reported that the rice warehouse was emptied by rats. Why are this year's rats clever enough to avoid guarded warehouses?"

The old patriarch trembled and bowed his head to the ground, not daring to answer.

Tuyết Doanh did not inquire further. She knew where the answer lay—not with rats, but with someone trying to weaken Bắc Nguyên from within, little by little, like water seeping into stone. But she had no proof yet, and a queen without proof could not swing her sword indiscriminately, even with her heart boiling like a volcano.

The meeting ended in a heavy atmosphere. When the patriarchs took turns leaving, Tô Bạch Vũ - the head guard who had followed her since the first days of ascending the throne - walked closer and lowered his voice.

"My lord, this subordinate has just received news. There is a group of messengers from Nam Xuyên on their way, said to discuss trade matters."

"Nam Xuyên," Tuyết Doanh repeated the name, one corner of her mouth lifting without becoming a smile. "Did Ước Liêm Phong send someone himself, or is this merely an ordinary manager?"

"I heard it's his nephew, bringing a generous gift."

"How generous." She stood, the hem of her snow-fox cloak sweeping across the cold stone floor. "The more generous the gift, the more the giver wants to take away—many times its value. Prepare a gracious reception. I want to see with my own eyes what the Ước family is planning." Bạch Vũ nodded, but then hesitated one more sentence. "Ah, and... your husband is still drunk in the back room. He hasn't woken up since noon." Tuyết Doanh did not answer, just sighed softly, a sigh that had been repeated countless times during the past six years.

***

Six years ago, when Tuyết Doanh had just received the seal from the hands of her deceased father, the Bắcương Elder Council convened a meeting that, even now thinking back, she still feels a lump in her throat.

"Lady Xa Thi," the oldest elder said at that time, his voice trembling with age but his eyes as steady as a rock, "Northern Cuong is in the most dangerous situation in the past fifty years - drought, epidemic, shaky tribes. According to the Thousand Year Covenant left by our ancestors, every time the fate of the land hangs in the balance, the leader of Bắcương is required to marry the person designated by the stars, so that the land can be protected."

"Who is the one appointed by the stars?" At that time Tuyết Doanh was only twenty-two years old, still naive enough to ask that question directly.

The elder pointed to the city gate, where a ragged beggar with messy hair was lying huddled among a pile of trash, having just been dragged in by patrolling soldiers for begging for trouble during the holiday.

"This person." The elder spoke, his voice never wavering. "The eight-character birth god coincides with the ancient prophecy left by the ancestors in the Thousand Year Covenant. This person appeared on the night the comet swept across the sky - an omen recorded in ancient books. Lord, this is God's will, not human will."

Tuyết Doanh looked at that beggar - skinny, smelly, eyes dull from hunger and thirst for many days, not having the slightest demeanor of someone whose fate was determined by heaven - and in her heart there was an indescribable shame. But she also knew that once the council of elders had invoked the Millennium Covenant, no one — not even the queen — had the right to resist, otherwise the entire tribe would turn away because they thought she was disrespectful to their ancestors.

So she married him. Married to a beggar who was illiterate, didn't know how to hold a sword, and only knew how to lie down all day, drink wine and sleep, named Cố Vọng Thần - a name given by the council of elders, which sounded grand but was completely opposite to his actual personality.

Six years have passed like that. And now, beyond the initial humiliation, something else had crept into her heart — a strange, sometimes warm, familiarity that she had never dared to name.

***

Nguyệt Trạch's back room is much quieter than the front hall. Cố Vọng Thần lay on his side on the bamboo bed, one arm resting on his head, the other resting loosely on his stomach, breathing steadily as if he were sleeping. But as soon as the wooden door creaked slightly open, those eyes were opened, completely awake, without a trace of alcohol.

"Dad! Are you awake yet?"

Tiểu Nguyệt's clear call rang out before she rushed in through the door, her two braids quickly flying with each small step. Vọng Thần immediately stood up, his drunken and lazy face disappeared, replaced by a warm smile that was not fake at all.

"Dad, you're awake. You've been awake for a long time." He reached out and picked up his daughter, placing her on his knees. "What new word did Tiểu Nguyệt learn today?"

"I learned words... words..." She frowned in thought, then pouted. "I forgot. But dad, the children at the market teased me, saying you were a useless beggar, saying mom was unlucky to marry you."

There was a very short silence, so short that only observant people would notice, before Vọng Thần smiled again, a slightly more forced smile.

"So Tiểu Nguyệt answered?"

"You said dad knows everything in the world! Dad even knows when it's about to rain, knows even when the old lady selling cakes will run out of goods so I can go buy them early!" The girl pouted proudly. "But the children didn't believe it, they laughed at me."

Vọng Thần rubbed his daughter's head, his eyes flashed with a deep sadness that a six-year-old child could not understand. She was much more correct than she thought. But that truth, if one day comes to light, will not only bring laughter and ridicule - it can bring disaster, like what happened to all the people he called brother, sister, master, more than a hundred years ago.

"Don't pay attention to what the kids say, girl." He hugged his child tightly in his arms. "I just need Tiểu Nguyệt and your mother to believe me."

"I believe! But mom..." Tiểu Nguyệt lowered her voice, acting secretive. "Mom doesn't seem to trust dad very much."

The child's innocent words were like a tiny needle piercing Vọng Thần's chest. He knows that better than anyone. During the six years of living together, Tuyết Doanh never really looked at him as a husband, but only as a burden to support because of the ancestral oath. He doesn't blame her. In return, anyone who is forced to marry a beggar in front of the whole world will find it difficult to truly love her.

But recently, there were moments — just fleeting moments — when her eyes lingered on his face longer than usual, when she unconsciously pulled the blanket back to cover him on the nights he pretended to be asleep in the yard, making him wonder if he was imagining it, or if something was really secretly changing.

***

That afternoon, the Nam Xuyên envoy arrived at Nguyệt Trạch just as reported. The leader was a handsomely dressed young man, calling himself Ước Kình Vũ, a cousin of Earl Ước Liêm Phong, carrying twenty carriages filled with brocade, precious tea and a box of rare sea pearls.

"The Queen of Bắcương is famous and famous. My uncle often speaks of her with deep respect." Kình Vũ bowed and bowed, his voice as sweet as honey. "This time, my uncle asked me to bring gifts, hoping to expand trade routes between Nam Xuyên and Bắcương and prosper together."

Tuyết Doanh sat on the chair, her eyes scanning the pile of lavish gifts without being moved. "I wish the Count had such kindness, why didn't Bắcương hear it before? I remember three years ago, it was Nam Xuyên who forced the price of purchasing furs from the eastern tribes down to less than half."

The smile on Kình Vũ's lips stiffened for a split second before regaining its natural look. "That's an old misunderstanding, my lord. My master now only wishes for peace and prosperity for both sides."

"Peace," Tuyết Doanh repeated, her voice cold as ice. "Okay. I will consider your proposal. But remember, Bắcương is not a piece of meat that anyone can take a bite of if they want."

After the envoys left, Tô Bạch Vũ stood next to her, frowning. "My lord, how do you feel?"

"Ước Liêm Phong is not such a kind person that he would suddenly bring such a generous gift." Tuyết Doanh looked at the convoy disappearing behind the city gate, her eyes as sharp as knives. "He's probing. Maybe he heard some rumors about Bắcương, and wants to see what's true before taking action."

Standing in the corner of the yard, no one noticed, Cố Vọng Thần - still wearing a ragged shirt, holding a wine bottle and pretending to sip - squinted his eyes and looked at that group of cars for a long time. In his mind, a vague but clear premonition was gradually taking shape, like dark clouds coming from afar to obscure an inherently peaceful sky.

"Ước Liêm Phong..." he muttered to himself, his voice so soft that only the wind could hear it. "Someone who carries in his heart an unpaid debt from his ancestors for three generations, now wants to use someone else's blood to pay off his family's debt?"

He tightened the wine bottle in his hand, then relaxed again, putting on a familiar stupid smile on his face before stumbling inside, as if he had never been so sober before.